Scribd Seeks to Upend Traditional Publishing World

San Francisco start-up Scribd is working with big name publishers to change the way content is shared online.

NEW YORK ( TheStreet) -- Social reading and publishing site Scribd lets users share documents ranging from best-selling books to academic papers and presentations across the Web.

In the last few months, the company has also unveiled a mobile application called Float that makes it easier for readers to view documents on their smartphones by stripping down Web pages into a cleaner format without pesky ads and external links. Float also provides reading recommendations from friends and followers on social networks like Facebook and Twitter.

Scribd has gained considerable traction since launching in 2006, raising nearly $26 million, attracting more than 75 million users a month and striking deals with big name publishers like Simon & Schuster who sell their books across the site's online store.

The Street recently spoke with Scribd CEO Trip Adler at the start-up's office in San Francisco (complete with go-carts and a Zip-line) to learn more about the company's strategy, new products and the future of the publishing industry.